She said: “The agency remains undaunted in its efforts to reduce the incidence of substandard and falsified products as well as the smuggling and abuse of various products”.

Adeyeye also said that in order to encourage local manufacture of herbal medicines, the agency was collaborating with traditional herbalists and researchers.

“The agency is keen on having herbal medicines widely accepted as safe, hence we will continue to test them for clinical efficacy before giving full registration status.

“We are also on a mission to turn herbal medicines into products that can be commercialised through collaboration between traditional herbalists and academic researchers.

“In encouraging local manufacturing of medicines that are usually imported, the agency will enforce a five- year importation permit given to manufacturers with a mandate that they produce five years plan geared towards local manufacturing upon renewal.

“In addition, the agency will also give five-year exclusive rights to companies to market their products without competition if they develop food and drugs that show demonstrable research and development innovation.

“This development will be effective before the end of the first quarter of the year,” she said.